Hunting Lesson
by BobR
Summary: In which Seras learns something about being a true vampire.


Disclaimer

Hellsing and all associated characters are the property of Gonzo Entertainment, Pioneer LDC and others.  I don't own any rights to them.  Any other characters are property of their respective copyright holders, not me.

*****

Hunting Lesson

*****

Seras Victoria lay back in her bed and stared at the mobile top piece that when lowered turned the immense four-poster bed into a coffin.  She really didn't understand what all the fuss was about, most things she though she'd known about vampires was turning out to be false.  While she certainly felt more at home in the night, she frequently went out during the day as well and had yet to burst into flame; although she had come down with a bad sunburn during one extended outing.  And garlic?  Well, she'd never actually liked it anyway but it didn't seem to bother her any more than before her change.  Crosses and holy ground were the same; she had no problems with either.  Pure silver now…  that was a different matter.  Seras had always thought that silver was a werewolf's bane, not a vampire's; but a badly burned finger or two had soon taught her otherwise.

She hadn't asked to become what she was.  Or rather, she had, but at the time she hadn't fully understood the consequences.  And now she'd have to live with her choice.

She snorted in derision.  Or maybe not exactly _live_ with it.  

Whatever.  

Aside from the craving for blood she didn't feel any different than she had before.  Oh sure, she was much stronger; and healed quickly from what would be instantly fatal injuries to a "living" person.  But she still breathed, her heart still beat and she bled and felt pain.  Hell, she even became aroused on occasion.  So what was so different?  What was being a true vampire all about?  She needed to find out.  She nodded her head sharply and "hmm'ed" as she came to a decision.

"It's all about choice, Police Girl," came a spectral voice in the darkness.  Startled, Seras sat up in her bed, her keen night vision spotting the form of the vampire Alucard materializing across the room.  "It was always about choice," Alucard stated as his body solidified.  "Yours, mine, the Hellsing Organization's."  He took a seat in the single chair supplied to the young vampiress and crossed his legs, resting his folded hands on his raised knee and looking at her through the darkness.  "So, you've finally come to realize just what you are now, have you?"

Seras grimaced then got up and flicked on the dim lights.  She sat back down on the edge of her bed, chin on her chest, idly swinging her legs back and forth.  "I suppose," she replied.  She looked up at him, determination stamped across her cute face.  "I don't like it, but I think I can accept it.  I am what I am."

"Yes.  You are no longer human."  Alucard half smiled.  "So, what will you do, Seras Victoria?"

The former police medic's eyes sparkled in anticipation.  "Teach me to hunt, Master.  I want to learn what it truly is to be what I am."

Alucard's smile widened into a full grin, his pointed canine teeth showing over the edge of his lower lip.  "Heh.  If that is what you wish, Police Girl, then that is what we will do."  He started to fade out.

Seras sprang to her feet.  "Wait!  Master!  Alucard…"

"Police Girl… Seras…" the elder vampire's disembodied voice whispered.  "I shall return shortly.  Dress yourself for the night, but not in a Hellsing uniform.  Tonight we hunt as true creatures of the night."

"Yes, sir," she replied eagerly.  She really had no concept of what she was in for.

*****

Sir Integra Wingates Hellsing looked up from her paperwork as Alucard appeared in her office.  "Don't you ever knock?" she asked in a mocking tone.

"I thought you could use a break," the vampire said as he stood before his employer.

"Oh, you have no idea," the young woman said as she pushed away the papers and lit a cigarillo.  "I take it you've finally made a breakthrough with your little project?"

Alucard chuckled.  "You've been eavesdropping again, haven't you?  Someday I'm going to tell her about the devices hidden throughout Hellsing House."

Integra waved a hand airily.  "Go right ahead.  As a former member of an elite police unit, she should already know that they exist.  But to answer your unspoken question, no, I can't allow you to hunt humans.  To do so would violate everything the Hellsing Organization and I stand for.  If you must hunt, hunt animals in the countryside."

Alucard grimaced in distaste.  "Although we can survive on the blood of lesser creatures, it leaves a vile taste in my mouth and there's no challenge, or fun, in such sport.  I prefer to leave that type of activity to you humans."

The young head of Hellsing blew a smoke ring towards the high ceiling.  "I cannot allow you to hunt humans," she repeated.  "If you must hunt, it must be lesser forms."

Alucard smiled at her determination.  "I see.  Yes."  The vampire started to leave then suddenly resolidified.  "The Metropolitan Police seem to have a bit of a problem on their hands lately," he said.

"You speak of the mutilation/murders that have been happening?" Integra asked, stubbing out her cigarillo.

"Yes," Alucard said with a smile.  "There have been fifteen events in the last three months."

"Something like that," Integra agreed.  "But there's no indication that they were caused by vampires so it's none of Hellsing's concern."

"No," the vampire agreed.  "But it seems that the police have no leads."

Integra glared at her vampiric employee; she knew what he was trying to do.  "It's not our problem," she reiterated through gritted teeth.  This damned vampire could grate on her nerves sometimes.  She often wondered why her great, great-grandfather hadn't just killed him and been done with it.

"I understand that the victims may have been still living when they were cut apart," Alucard continued as if he hadn't heard her.  "Some may even have lived for several hours afterwards. And may even have been saved if gotten to soon enough."

"Damn it, Alucard!  It's not our job!" Integra snarled.

The vampire looked blandly at her.  "No, not Hellsing's certainly.  But these creatures seem to have Man's law stymied.  I am simply asking your permission for a night of sport.  No innocents will be harmed."

Integra sat down and held her head as if in pain.  "Now you're using my own arguments against me.  Damn."  She looked up at him.  "'Creatures' you said.  You consider them animals then.  Perhaps you're right.  Do you really think you can hunt these bastards down by yourself?"

Alucard grinned evilly.  "Heh.  I already have, but this will be for the Police Girl's benefit, so I will only guide her in the proper direction."

Integra sat back in her chair and closed her eyes in resignation.  "All right then, you, and Seras, have one, and only one, night to do what you will.  But if I hear of any innocents being fed upon, Hellsing will be coming after _you_ next."  The vampire started to fade away.  "Oh, and Alucard," Integra called out, opening her eyes.  "If it so happens that the police get to them first, the whole deal's off."

"I understand, my master," came the reply from nowhere and everywhere at once.  Integra suppressed a shudder.

*****

Alucard was already waiting and looked at Seras in annoyance as she swung down off the bus.  "What?" she asked.  "Is something wrong?"

"Bus…" the elder vampire muttered.  "I think that the next lesson will be how to use your abilities to travel.  The concept of a true vampire taking public transportation everywhere is ludicrous."

"Well I've never learned how to drive… and I really can't afford a car anyway." Seras started to explain.

Alucard smirked.  "I'm not talking about driving.  But that's for another time, tonight we hunt."  He eyed her outfit, which consisted of baggy jeans, a halter-top and hiking boots.  "I thought I told you to dress appropriately."

She glanced down at herself then looked back at her master.  "What's wrong with it?" she asked.

Alucard turned away and looked up the street.  "It's not quite what I had in mind, but I suppose it will do."

"And just what did you have in mind?  Leather?  Vinyl?  _Latex?_"

Alucard turned back to her and chuckled.  "No, I was picturing more of a long, high necked dress.  But then again, it's been almost a century since I last hunted with a female vampire; I suppose I'm somewhat out-of-date.  No, what you have on is fine."

Seras looked down at herself again and tried to picture the outfit her master had described.  "A dress… riiiight.  You're supposed to be teaching me to hunt, not dance."

He smiled benignly at her.  "There are certain similarities."  He looked back up the street.  "Can you feel it Police Girl?  Our prey is somewhere close by."

She followed his gaze but saw nothing out of the ordinary.  "How do you know this, Master Alucard?  I don't sense anything."

"You need to open your mind, feel the emotions of the beings around you.  Use your senses to find those we seek."

"Use my senses," Seras muttered.  She tried to do as she was told but got nothing.  "Master, I can't.  I don't know how," she exclaimed, a hint of disappointment and fear of displeasing him tainting her voice.

Alucard sighed and held out his hand.  "Place your hand in mine Seras Victoria," he told her.  She tentatively reached out and took the proffered appendage.  "Now relax," he said.  "Let the world around you flow into and through your mind."

She felt his hand grow warm in hers and suddenly they were there, the people in the homes and apartments around her.  She couldn't really hear their thoughts, but she felt them.  She felt _fear_, a little boy was being scolded by his father; _lust_, a young couple was entwined in a moment of passion; _anticipation_, a small girl was opening her birthday gifts.  A whiff of _jealousy_ from the girl's younger sister almost made her smile.  And then there was something else, something evil, farther away than the others but not too distant.  Her red-pupiled eyes widened.  "Oh!  I feel them," she said excitedly.

Alucard let go of her hand.  "Good, you've taken the first step," he told her.  "Now, can you find where our prey is?"

Her head snapped around and she pointed with a steady finger.  "That way, not far."

Alucard grinned, pleased with the progress she'd made so quickly.  "Very good, Police Girl.  Very good indeed."  He swept his arm out and bowed slightly.  "Shall we?"  Seras swallowed hard and nodded agreement.  The two started off down the street, the young vampire following a few steps behind the older.

After walking several blocks, Seras suddenly stopped while Alucard kept moving.  "Master?" she called softly.  

Alucard stopped but didn't turn around.  "What is it, Police Girl?"

"We've just passed the evil feelings."  She looked back over her shoulder.  "That house I think," she said, indicating a slightly run-down dwelling with a nod.

"Heh.  Very, very good, Seras," he complimented her.  "Yes, that _is_ the place.  But before we examine it, what else can you tell me about that house?"

"I'm not sure what you…" Her nose began to twitch.  "I smell…"  She turned to him in anticipation, her eyes beginning to glow in the darkness.  "I smell fresh blood, recently spilled, coming from that very house.  Sweet, untainted blood."  She ran her tongue across her fangs and licked her lips.

Alucard chuckled.  "Excellent.  It seems there's hope for you yet, Seras Victoria.  Yes, it appears we may have to interrupt our prey in one of their… _activities_."  He started to fade out.

"Master!  Wait!"  She reached out but her hand passed through his ghostly form.

"I will meet you inside," he said just before he was entirely gone.  "Remember, _you_ are the hunter here, not them.  Oh, and Police Girl, the pistol you have in the holster strapped to your leg will come in handy.  After all, it wouldn't do to have ghouls running around loose, now would it?"

She looked at the house, her eyes now glowing like two coals in the night.  "Yes, my Master!"  She reached down and pulled up the leg of her jeans, removing the 9mm pistol from its holster and tucking it in to her belt behind her back.

*****

Two men and a woman sat at a rickety table drinking beer.  A single, unshaded bulb lit the room from a fixture on the ceiling.  One of the men was fairly young, dressed in ragged clothes that gave him a scruffy appearance; the other was older, although certainly not elderly, and wore finer clothing.  The woman was of an indeterminate age with long brown hair and also scruffily dressed, but for all that she still might have been called beautiful.  All three of them were blood-splattered, as were the walls of the room.  In a corner was a mewling mass of something that might once have been human, but now was just so much tortured flesh.

"Them damn cops still haven't got a clue," the younger man was saying.  "They'll never catch us."

"You sound like you want them to," replied the elder, taking a long swallow of his drink.

The other snorted.  "Naw, not really.  But if they do start to close in on us, we can just move on, like before."

"Yeah," piped in the woman.  "There's always more 'material' in other places."

"Gawd, I love this stuff," the younger man threw his empty can at the thing in the corner.  "They should put our work in a museum, give us awards for creativity."

"Heheheheheh."  A disembodied chuckle echoed through the room.  "I'll never understand you humans.  You act like monsters to each other, but you have no concept of what a monster truly is."

"What the hell…" the older man's chair fell over as he stood up.  "Who's here?  Show yourself."  He pulled a gun from his coat.  The other two hurriedly picked up knives that had been discarded on the floor amongst the blood.

"No, you have no idea at all.  Let me show you…"  Alucard materialized near the door.

The man fired the gun twice and Alucard looked down at the two neat holes in his chest; he smiled, his fangs clearly visible.  "That won't work.  Try again."

"He's wearing a vest," the younger man shouted.  "Aim for his head!"

But before the other could pull the trigger, Alucard was on him, tearing out his throat with his sharp teeth.  The vampire looked up, blood coating the lower half of his face, his victim writhing in his death throes under him.  The woman screamed and dashed out the door, heading upstairs in panic.  The young man, frozen in shock, dropped the bloody knife he was holding and wet himself.

"Now that's more like a human," Alucard smirked as he stalked the young man.  "So, you consider yourself artists?" the vampire asked.  "I'll paint a mural on these walls with your blood.  You'll feel pain so excruciating that you'll beg for release, but I have no pity for your kind."  To Seras he sent, _[Police Girl, the woman has fled upstairs.  She is yours, but remember, no ghouls.]_

Seras tumbled into the room through the window she'd climbed to reach.  "Yes, Master," she said quietly, standing up and dusting herself off.  She heard stumbling footsteps coming her way and she faded into the shadows to wait.

The woman threw open the door to the bedroom and stood bent over, trying to catch her breath.  "Damn," she gasped.  "Who was that?  What was that?"  She took a couple of sliding steps towards the open window that Seras had entered by, seeing it as a way to escape.

The door creaked slightly as it was pushed closed, revealing a slender figure.  "That was my Master," said the vampire Seras Victoria, stepping out of the shadows.

The woman turned, startled by the sudden words, and stared at the apparition that had appeared as if from nowhere.  "And just who the hell are you?" she asked, hefting the knife she'd forgotten to drop in her haste to get away from the carnage below.

"Justice," Seras said in a low voice.

The woman screamed and charged, her bloody blade held in front of her like a lance.  Seras didn't even bother to move, but she gasped in pain as the blade entered her stomach.  

"You'll never take me alive, you bitch.  I'll kill you," the woman whispered in Seras' ear.  She twisted the blade then let go of the knife and stepped back.  "I guess I put paid to your account, missy," she said, waiting for Seras to double over and fall.  It didn't happen.  With a grimace, Seras reached down, pulled the knife from her belly and tossed it away.  The woman stared at her, wide-eyed.  Seras smiled, her fangs glinting in the dim light coming through the dirty window panes.  "You… You're not human!" the woman cried out, fear twisting her features into a caricature of themselves.

Seras took a step forward.  "No, I'm not.  Not anymore.  And who said anything about taking you alive?"  She reached out and grabbed the woman's arm.  As she squeezed, she could feel and hear bones cracking and breaking.  The woman screamed in pain.  Seras hissed at her.  "You and your friends kill for pleasure.  I kill only when I must, and then, only those that deserve it."

"Please, no," the woman pleaded.

Sears grabbed her by the throat.  "Did your victims plead with you as you mutilated them?  Did you listen?"  She picked the other up one handed and tossed her against the wall.  The woman slid to the floor in a heap, the plaster where she'd hit cracked and starred.  Blood trailed from the corner of her mouth.

"P…p…please…" the woman moaned.  Seras picked her up again and hurled her into a bedframe left by the home's former occupants.  Dry wood cracked and broke under the assault, as did more human bones.  The young vampire was totally caught up in the thrill of the moment, her crimson eyes burning holes through the darkness.  She moved silently to where her prey lay huddled in pain amongst the remains of the bed.  The woman whimpered in fear, which drove Seras even further into the bloodlust.

Seras took her by a leg and dragged her out into the middle of the room.  She tilted the other woman's head back and bared her fangs.  "Time to die," she whispered, the part of her that longed to be human again feeling revulsion at what she was about to do.  "May God have mercy on your soul…  and on mine."

Seras sank her teeth into her victim's throat and began to drink.  The woman moaned in ecstasy then shook weakly for a moment before growing very still.  Seras continued to drink deeply.

A deep chuckle came from the doorway.  "Yes, Seras Victoria.  Enjoy the moment, for now you truly are a creature of the night.  Feed on her, heed the call of the blood." 

Seras looked up, her face streaked with the blood of her victim.  "Master?" she said softly.

Alucard's voice carried through the blood-splattered ruins of the bedroom.  "Time to go, Police Girl.  You know what to do."

"Yes, Master," Seras said in agreement as she stood up and wiped her bloody hands on her thighs, smearing the blood that was already splattered on her jeans.  Pulling the 9mm pistol from her belt, she aimed it at the head of her "meal".  "No ghouls…" she mumbled and pulled the trigger.  The woman's body jerked once, proving that the transformation into a ghoulish state had already begun.  Seras watched with an impassionate expression as the newly reanimated corpse's eyes glazed over and the once-beautiful body turned to dust.  Then she turned and walked out of the room and down the stairs, joining Alucard near the front door.

Alucard indicated a closed door at the end of the short hallway.  "There are two others in the back room, Police Girl, already drained.  Please deal with them as well.  I have one more thing to do here before we leave."

"Yes sir," said Seras, moving off and checking her pistol.  Entering the room, she put a bullet into each of the torn bodies and watched as they turned to dust.  She sighed and put the pistol back in her leg holster, figuring that she wouldn't need it again tonight.  She was about to leave when she heard a sound coming from elsewhere in the room.  Investigating, she found what appeared to be a badly tortured and cut up young girl.  At least she thought it was a girl, it was difficult to determine given the state she was in.  "Master!" she called out.  "Master Alucard!"

"Yes, Police Girl," came his voice from the doorway.  "I know.  But it may be too late to save her.  Leave her where she is."

"But by the time the police get here, it _will_ be too late," Seras argued.

Alucard turned away.  "The police are already coming.  It seems that two suspicious persons were seen in the neighborhood, near this house."

"How did…?" Seras extended her senses as Alucard had taught her earlier.  "Oh.  Yes."  Her nose suddenly twitched as a familiar odor impinged upon it.  "Is that… gas?"  She looked at Alucard, eyes growing wide.  "You can't mean to…"

Alucard turned his head and looked at her over the rim of his sunglasses.  "But I can.  It wouldn't do having to explain how the fingerprints of an officer killed in the line of duty several months ago were found in fresh blood, along with a mutilation victim.  No one must know we were here."

"I'll not leave her."  Seras' voice was strained as she challenged her master's domination, fighting his will.

"Police Girl…"  Alucard saw the determined look in Sera's red eyes.  "Oh, very well.  You may bring her outside.  If she's still alive when the police arrive then she may have a chance."

"Thank you, Master," Seras said as she bent down and picked up the bloody, broken form.

The two watched from the street as the house burst into flames.  The fire quickly spread, fed by the gas that Alucard had turned on.  Seras gently lowered the now mercifully unconscious victim onto the grass, the sound of approaching sirens plainly heard in the distance.

Alucard grinned at Seras.  "This has been a pleasant evening, eh, Police Girl?"

She looked back at him.  "Thank you for the lesson, but I don't think I'll be making a habit of it."

Alucard sighed.  "No, I suppose not."

"But I will drink the blood from now on," she said, staring at the flames.  "I finally understand what I am."

Alucard's smile went unnoticed by Seras.  "Walter is waiting with a car a few blocks from here," he told her.  "You should be able to find him with no problem."

"A car?" she wondered.  "But why?"

Alucard chuckled.  "Think, Police Girl.  You certainly can't take a bus back across town covered in blood as you are.  What would people think?"  He started to fade away.  "Yes, a pleasant evening indeed."

*****

Integra stormed into Alucard's room and slammed the daily paper down on the table.  "And just what is the meaning of this?" she yelled, pointing at the headline.  It read: 'Mutilation Victim Found Still Alive'.  Then in just slightly smaller print: 'Claims She Was Rescued By Two Blood Covered, Red-Eyed Monsters With Huge Fangs'.

"Heh," chuckled Alucard.  "It was the Police Girl's idea.  I wanted to leave her to die in peace."

Integra gave him a wry smile.  "You're a real monster, do you know that?"

He smiled back.  "I do, indeed I do."

The young Hellsing lord picked up the newspaper and tucked it under her arm.  "Yes.  Well.  It seems that the Metropolitan Police have closed the case.  I just wanted to tell you and Seras 'Well Done'.  I looked in on her a moment ago; it appears she's been quite ill ever since she returned this morning.  Walter said it came on her suddenly during the ride home, he was worried about her."

Alucard chuckled again.  "Yes, she's an odd one for a vampire, isn't she?  Even after everything she's seen and done, she still refuses to give up her humanity.  I wonder why she made the choice."

"You'll have to ask her that," Integra said as she walked to the door.  "I have no idea.  But when she's feeling a bit better, tell her what I've said, and also tell her that the girl will recover, although she'll have a hard go of it for a while.  It seems that someone," and Integra smiled.  "Someone has made a rather large, anonymous, contribution to her medical fund.  She's getting the best care available.  Oh, and Alucard," she said, stopping in the doorway and turning to stare him in the eye.  "This will not happen again."  Integra pulled the heavy wooden door shut as she walked out.

"Ah, this is so much fun," Alucard said into the empty space.  "I can't wait to see what will happen next."

*****

The End.

*****

Author's Notes.

Well, here it is, my first, and maybe last, Hellsing fic.  I've left this pretty open to interpretation, so that it can fit into either the anime or the manga continuities.

I want to thank Mr. Mitts for helping me over a couple of sticky points and for correcting me on a few 'issues' in the original draft.  I hope I've got most of them fixed.

The idea of Seras in leather or latex is for you Dameus.  I know it's not quite Princess Ayeka, but I hope it makes you happy anyway.  (You know I'm not ever going to let you live that down, don't you?)

*****

BobR

10/19/2003


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